Housing Leadership Day 

✧Sponsorships✧

✧Housing Leadership Day Awardee✧

Do you know someone who has demonstrated exceptional leadership and significantly impacted the housing sector? Now is the perfect opportunity to recognize and celebrate their achievements! We invite you to fill out the Housing Leadership Day Awardee form and nominate that deserving individual for this honor. Your nomination could spotlight their dedication, innovation, and commitment to creating positive change in the housing industry. Let's come together to acknowledge and applaud the outstanding contributions of these remarkable individuals. Submit your nomination today and let them know their hard work is valued and appreciated.  

Policy Updates

✧Millbrae - Project Homekey at the La Quinta Inn✧

HLC would like to thank Vice Mayor Goodman, Councilmember Angelina Cahalan, Supervisor Dave Pine, and County Manager Mike Callagy for their much-needed leadership and steadfast support of the County of San Mateo’s intent to purchase the La Quinta Inn in the City of Millbrae to create permanent supportive homes for up to 150 your unhoused community members.

As you may already know, on Friday, 8/18, County Staff held an information session in front of 500+ attendees (largely in opposition due to misinformation) regarding the County’s intent to assist your unhoused community members. It needs to be highlighted that many of your fellow unsheltered community members are gainfully employed, but because of the lack of quality affordable homes, they can’t afford to live in Millbrae, much less in your County. The majority once had stable housing, graduated from the same schools as you and your children, and continued to support the community by working and shopping throughout the city. They’ve been in here this entire time; they are members of your community. 

When your leaders make better housing policies and our housing system operates better, the survival of your community members aren’t left to chance or “luck”. Our systems should help us

plan for and provide the critical things that people actually need to live, work, and thrive here. The Project Homekey proposal does just that.

We urge ALL Millbrae city leaders to support the County of San Mateo’s intent to purchase the La Quinta Inn and the Board of Supervisors to approve the proposal - because anyone who grew up, works, or currently lives in Millbrae and San Mateo County deserves a safe and stable place to call home. Nobody deserves to live on the street, nobody deserves to die on the street (Vice Mayor Goodman).    

✧Measure K Survey✧

The San Mateo County Board of Supervisors has begun the process of completely rewiring how Measure K sales tax dollars are allocated. In the 2021-2022 fiscal year, Measure K raised almost $110 million, approximately $9 million of which went to affordable housing subsidies, so the stakes are high. 

To better understand the community’s needs, the county has created a survey.

If you don’t know what to ask for, HLC has you covered with some Measure K talking points, which tells you everything you need to know about how Measure K can help the county produce more affordable homes and protect tenants.

✧Bay Area Housing Finance Authority - Regional Bond✧

Support Funding for Affordable Homes!

It’s not too late for you and your organization to endorse the nine-county Bay Area affordable housing bond!

Bay Area Housing Finance Authority (BAHFA) was established by the California State Legislature in 2019 to come up with and implement region-wide solutions to the Bay Area’s affordable housing issues and raise funding for affordable housing across all nine counties. Its focus is rooted in the “3P’s” of affordable housing. These are:

• Protection for current residents to prevent displacement
• Preservation of existing homes affordable to lower- and middle-income community members
• Production of new (especially affordable) homes at all income levels 

Many of our cities and counties in the Bay Area address their housing needs individually, usually with limited to no staff and financial resources. BAHFA’s success is important because it takes a more regional approach through coordination and provides access to funds and resources -- it helps create a level playing field among all 101 cities and 9 counties in the Bay Area.  

For San Mateo County, the Bay Area affordable housing bond will generate $1 billion for the protection of at-risk renters and the creation and preservation of affordable homes, but it won’t happen without your support. Please pass this along AND sign on to support Affordable Housing funding HERE! 

If you have any questions, please direct them to kchan@hlcsmc.org! 

✧Assembly Constitutional Amendment (ACA) 1✧

As many of you may already know, the regional BAHFA bond will generate $10 billion for the protection of at-risk renters and the creation and preservation of affordable homes throughout the Bay Area. Just like any bond in CA, there is a ⅔ voter threshold for it to pass.

You now have the opportunity to help remove one of the most significant barriers to funding housing in CA! Assembly Constitutional Amendment 1 lowers the local vote threshold for local bond and special tax measures from two-thirds to 55%. A two-thirds vote is simply unattainable in many communities that are in desperate need of local investment in affordable housing and housing-supportive infrastructure. More importantly, if your leaders at the state legislature approve ACA 1, it will apply to the BAHFA bond!

You can help by:

Submitting a letter of support on the advocate portal here. You can use this template letter to submit on behalf of your organization or to write your own. In addition, please also email a copy of your letter to jmarcus@enterprisecommunity.org, our friend at Enterprise Community Partners.

OR

Calling your legislators who need to hear your support (talking points):

CA State Assembly

Assemblymember Philip Ting - District 19 - (916) 319-2019 | (415) 557-2312   

Assemblymember Diane Papan - District 21 - (916) 319-2021 | (650) 349-2200

Assemblymember Marc Berman - District 23 - (916) 319-2023 | (650) 324-0224

CA State Senate

Senator Scott Wiener - District 11 - (916) 651-4011 | (415) 557-1300

Senator Josh Becker - District 13 - (916) 651-4013 | (650) 233-2724

If you’re unsure who your representative is, click here to find out!

For questions, please contact kchan@hlcsmc.org.

Opportunities

✧Join Us for a Community BBQ and Support the Proposed Serramonte Del Rey Housing Neighborhood! 🏡✧

🗓️ Date: Saturday, September 9, 2023

⏰ Time: 1:30 PM - 2:30 PM (Optional Canvassing)

📍 Location: Jefferson High School, 6996 Mission St, Daly City, CA 94014

🔊 Calling All Community Members!

Join us for an exciting afternoon that combines community engagement, insightful discussions, and delicious food! We're thrilled to invite you to our FREE community BBQ event, focused on supporting the Jefferson Union High School District's groundbreaking Serramonte Del Rey housing project.

Let's unite, amplify our voices, and support a brighter future for all.

For more details and to RSVP, please follow the link here: http://bit.ly/3P8dVE7 

Looking forward to seeing you there!

✧Listen to the new Podcast Bay the Bay Episode, Featuring HLC’s Jeremy Levine✧ 

On August 17, Podcast By The Bay, hosted by Foster City city council member Patrick Sullivan, sat down with HLC’s very own Policy Manager, Jeremy Levine. Jeremy discusses a number of important takes on our current housing issues, including defining the housing crisis, exclusionary housing and zoning, and even rent control. He also brings some insight into some of his passions outside of housing.

Find the episode wherever you listen to podcasts at https://www.baycitycommunications.com/podcastbythebay.

✧Sign up for the San Mateo County Civics 101 academy✧

Civics 101 is a free county program that provides an in-depth look at County

programs, services, finances, and initiatives. Participants primarily learn from and interact

with department heads or their designees about topics such as health, public safety,

human services, parks, public finance, sustainability, the justice system, and more.

This program begins Wednesday, August 30, and continues for 9 consecutive weeks. To apply, please follow the following link: https://www.smcgov.org/ceo/civics-101-academy 

The deadline to apply is August 28

✧RWC and SSF Measure K Listening Sessions Report Back✧

To gather community input on how to prioritize Measure K tax dollars in the areas of housing and homelessness, children and families, emergency preparedness, and mental health, county staff held a series of listening sessions in several cities. Redwood City and South San Francisco were among some cities where the sessions were held. 

Walking into the session, you are asked to pin the city where you live on a map. You were then given a bag of 10 marbles to distribute into different jars, each labeled with one of the four areas of focus of the Board of Supervisors mentioned above. The housing jar had the most marbles for both Redwood City and South City sessions.

A short presentation briefly covered each of the priorities and the timeline of the Measure K process, with the listening sessions serving as the starting point where the community's needs were heard. The County then asked residents how they would spend $500, $1,000, $1,000,000, and $10,000,000 in tax dollars if given the chance. Housing was a recurring theme in these discussions, with proposals coming up for wide-ranging policies such as rental assistance, housing for seniors, and affordable housing. In the Fall of this year, the county will review the data from each of the sessions, followed by in the Spring of 2024 the deciding and planning of the programs to be carried out and ending with the implementation of the programs by the Summer of 2024. 

If you were unable to attend one of the sessions and still want to give your input on Measure K funding, you can take the San Mateo County Community Needs Survey here: research.net/r/smcneeds. If you don’t know what to ask for, HLC has you covered with some Measure K talking points.

✧Redwood City Town Hall with Vice-Mayor Lissette Espinoza-Garnica✧

OUR YOUTH DESERVE TO THRIVE! ¡NUESTROS JÓVENES MERECEN PROSPERAR!

Save the date and join Vice Mayor Lissette Espinoza Garnica for this impactful town hall in Redwood City on Wednesday, August 30th, at 6 p.m.! To register, please follow the link here: https://www.mobilize.us/ca-wfp/event/569250/.